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National groups oppose ban

ASHEBORO — Opposition to the Randolph County Board of Education’s ban of “Invisible Man” from Randolph County School System libraries continues to mount.

On Monday, both the American Library Association and the national Kids’ Right to Read Project sent letters to school board members about the book ban. Both groups wrote about their concerns, particularly constitutional ones, and asked the board to reconsider its action.

Last week, the People For the American Way Foundation also contacted board members urging them to reverse their decision about the book ban. Others have also emailed board members asking them to reconsider the ban of Ralph Ellison’s acclaimed and prize-winning novel published 50 years ago.

The county school board announced last Thursday that it would take another look at the ban which was decided by a 5-2 vote at its Sept. 16 regular meeting.

A special meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday at 5 p.m. at the Central Services board room at the McDowell Center, 2222 S. Fayetteville St., Asheboro, “for the purpose of reconsidering the status of the book entitled ‘Invisible Man’ by Ralph Ellison.” It’s open to the public, however, the agenda for the specially called meeting does not include time for public comments.

The agenda provides for the following items: Call to order, Moment of Silence, introductions, legal framework, book challenge process and recommendation of committees, objections to and support for “Invisible Man,” board discussion, vote and adjournment. Board members will have an opportunity to offer comments.

The public has an opportunity to view the 41-page book challenge process agenda item by going to the Randolph County Schools website at www.randolph.k12.nc.us, clicking on Board of Education on the left hand side of the home page and then the Sept. 25 agenda under 2013-14 meetings link.

This document includes the board policy pertaining to Parental Inspection and Objection to Instructional Materials or Curriculum and the original complaint by a Randleman High School parent regarding “Invisible Man” being among the three suggested summer reading selections for 2013-14 school year juniors. The parent objected to the book’s language and sexual content, detailing excerpts in a 12-page supplemental document to her Parent Request for Reconsideration of Instructional Media form required by board policy.

The process agenda item also includes the school committee’s rationale for support of the book, the parent’s appeal of the school-based decision, the district committee’s deliberations and its recommendation to keep the book, along with a review of the entire process by Catherine Berry, county schools assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction.

Monday’s requests to board members for elimination of the book ban mention U.S. Supreme Court decisions which “held that public school officials may not remove books from school library shelves simply because of their disagreement with the views or ideas expressed in the books,” according to Barbara Jones, director of the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom.

Similar comments are contained in the letter from the Kids’ Right to Read Project, which is a project of the National Coalition Against Censorship co-sponsored by the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, Association of American Publishers and Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Other groups also supported the letter including the National Council of Teachers of English, PEN American Center and ALA.

The book ban has caught the attention of media outlets and blogs throughout the country including the Huffington Post, AP, Los Angeles Times, PBS, NPR, San Francisco Chronicle, UPI, Gawker, Christian Science Monitor, School Library Journal and many, many more.